Printing Architecture: Innovative Recipes for 3D Printing

Description

Although 3D printing promises a revolution in many industries, primarily industrial manufacturing, nowhere are the possibilities greater than in the field of product design and modular architecture. Ronald Rael and Virginia San Fratello, of the cutting-edge San Francisco–based design firm Emerging Objects, have developed remarkable techniques for "printing" from a wide variety of powders, including sawdust, clay, cement, rubber, concrete, salt, and even coffee grounds, opening an entire realm of material, phenomenological, and ecological possibilities to designers. In addition to case studies and illustrations of their own work, Rael and San Fratello offer guidance for sourcing alternative materials, specific recipes for mixing compounds, and step-by-step instructions for conducting bench tests and setting parameters for material testing, to help readers to understand the process of developing powder-based materials and their unique qualities. Review: Wonderful introduction to 3D powder printing - A great overview of 3D powder printing in unusual and sustainable materials, by a pioneer and master of the art. Review: Very interesting and informative book - I am just getting into 3d printing and am in the process of building my first Prusa FDM 3D printer from a kit. I really enjoyed reading about the history of materials and the potential for it to move much further into a sustainable direction. I also appreciate the fact that they include recipes in the back of the book that I would love to experiment with. The only disappointment I experienced was realizing that I really don't have the means of replicating the majority of what they discuss in the book right now because most of it applies to paste extrusion. Still a positive is the fact that I even understand what that is now after reading this book. The problem is you really need one of their paste extruder 3d printers or "potterbot" to really do this. I believe when I looked at the website these machines are upwards of $14,000. That is far out of my reach at the moment. Again, I still love the book and really appreciate what they are doing and am very grateful they have shared.